Bangkok is a delightful city, vibrant and diverse. I enjoy visiting it frequently. Amidst the chaos and hustle, you’ll discover the true hidden gems, the most beautiful spots, the friendliest people, the most surprising alleys, and the best-cared-for cats. But sometimes, you have to escape the crowds, the noise, the heat and the grime.
In this travelogue I describe three excursions in Bangkok: two immersed in green and one on the water. 🌿💧
Walking through Bang Kachou, Samut Prakan
Today, we embarked on an excursion to Bangkok’s “green lung,” a vast area enclosed by a river loop. First, we took the bus (number 47 from National Stadium), a very old vehicle with holes in the wooden floor through which you could see the road. But also, there was a screen indicating the stops. Traffic flowed reasonably well, except for one instance where we needed to turn right, but the lane we had to cross remained blocked due to congestion. Another bus forced its way through. After 40 minutes, we reached the final stop.
Initially, the area was filled with rental bicycles and parked motorcycles, but soon we found ourselves walking amidst greenery, passing small houses and fields. The footpath we followed for a few kilometres was an elevated concrete walkway—truly beautiful. You could hear various birds singing in the trees and animals rustling in the leaves, although they were mostly hidden from view.
After about an hour, we reached the botanical garden, a meticulously landscaped park. We strolled through the rear section, where efforts were made to restore three types of original forests, including apple mangroves characterized by their small aerial roots shooting out of the ground. It was green, airy, and peaceful, making the heat bearable. At the park’s edge, a passage led to a small café just outside. There, we enjoyed a refreshing cool drink.
All in all, we walked for a solid 2½ hours before returning to the jetty. Including the bus ride, it was a full-day excursion. 🌿🌞
Phi Suea Samut Fort, Paknam, Samut Prakan
Another substantial excursion. It began with 40 minutes on a cold BTS (Skytrain) ride to Pak Nam. The crowd quickly thinned out, while on the opposite platforms, towards the city, many people were waiting. From Paknam BTS, we walked into town. It felt different right away: the air was clearer, with fewer gasoline fumes and more sea breeze. And it felt somewhat less sophisticated and more provincial. We stopped at Inthanin, a coffee shop, for a decent cup of coffee. The coffee shop didn’t have a restroom. But having learned from previous experiences, I understood the girl when she gestured: outside, to the left, to the left. Indeed, there was a narrow passage. And at the back, there was a turnstile where you could insert 5 baht. Behind it were the restrooms.
We continued walking to the market, through the market, and at the back there was a pier. A medium-sized wooden boat arrived swiftly. It was busy as we crossed the river. We navigated between large cargo ships and naval vessels, eventually docking behind Phi Suea Samut Island. We were near the mouth of the Chao Phraya River, where it meets the sea, so the water was brackish and tidal. Under the footbridge from the pontoon to the shore, a mudskipper spectacle unfolded in the mud. We had never seen such large ones, up to 20 cm long. They looked eerie. Usually, they sat still, but sometimes they crawled with their fins through the mud or swam away. Smaller ones, around 10 cm in size, displayed beautiful green hues and occasionally raised their dorsal fins. Occasionally, a crab emerged from a hole in the mud, its disproportionately large claw adding to the sense of awe.
We walked through a slightly smaller market toward the street. Turning right, we passed a row of shops, most of which were closed, heading toward the temple. Through a peculiar, half-decayed building, you could climb the stairs to the suspension bridge over the river's tributary that ran along this side of the island. That small island was mostly a nature reserve, home to mangroves, snakes, bats, and large white birds. A concrete path on stilts led to the southern tip, where a fort stood - guarding the river mouth. The fort had rooms for troops, ammunition, cannons, and periscopes. There was a statue of an admiral and an exhibition with posters about an incident involving the French.
Until then, it had been a reasonably cool morning, but the walk back was quite warm. Returning to the Paknam side, we headed to the OK restaurant, which had garnered some attention on social media. It was nicely decorated, and the owner was an enthusiastic man. Although they promoted vegetarian options, those were somewhat limited.
We walked to the large observation tower. It followed the tradition of watching for ships arriving from the sea. Even though today wasn't clear, you still had a beautiful view all the way from the river to the sea. The first few kilometres were visible, but the high-rise buildings of downtown Bangkok remained vague.
An elevated walkway connected the tower to the BTS station. However, finding the right floor and door in the tower proved challenging. And then we discovered that the walkway was closed. The reason was unclear. So, we ended up walking along busy roads to reach the BTS.
This, too, was almost a full-day excursion.
Three-Boat Tour
Just like Amsterdam, Bangkok is a city with many canals. I devised a route through the city that involves taking three different boats. We started at the Hua Chang pier, just south of the Rachathewi BTS station, but you can also board at the northern end of various Sukhumvit sois (such as 3, 15, 21), or even all the way at the Bang Kapi pier, where the Yellow Line runs.
